The first RPG I ever played was D&D 3.5. I don’t remember much of the details except being a halfling rogue who tried to steal a diamond and got turned to stone.
That’s not what this post is about, really.
D&D has its problems and I don’t really play it anymore. I don’t really play much of anything D20 anymore – mostly I play story games. But, this is a recent development. For a very long time I played more traditional games like D&D, Shadowrun, Pathfinder, and similar stuff. A few years ago I kind of cracked and found a new home in story games and more freeform, simple stuff.
However, without D&D, I may have never found my way to gaming. My life with gaming has been tumultuous – the relationship drama that surrounds so many gaming groups was no stranger to me, and I’ve lost a lot of friends that I gamed with for both good and bad reasons.
I don’t miss all of them. I don’t really even miss D&D.
I’m still grateful for it.
Happy Birthday, D&D.